Gage Wood, Joey Chestnut Highlight Action-Packed Upcoming Series With Harrisburg

Fightin Phils, Senators Clash For Reading’s Second Cross-Divisional Series

May 25, 2026

(Reading, PA) - The Reading Fightin Phils (Philadelphia Phillies Double-A affiliate) will welcome the Harrisburg Senators (Washington Nationals Double-A affiliate) to FirstEnergy Stadium for the teams’ first series clash of the season from Tuesday to Sunday. Both teams are in intense pursuit of first place in their respective divisions before

Tuesday is a 12 PM Education Day game, where students from schools in and around the Reading area will pour into FirstEnergy Stadium for the first of back-to-back Education Day games. All active military and veteran personnel will get $3 off box seats for this contest as well. Wednesday, the back end of a back-to-back Education Day sequence, will get underway with first pitch at 11 AM. Amusement park lovers will enjoy Thursday’s promotion, as the first 2,000 kids age 12 and under will get a Hersheypark admission ticket on their way into the stadium. Phillies top pitching prospect Gage Wood is also projected to make his FirstEnergy Stadium debut. There will also be a beer, wine and seltzer tasting with an all-you-can-eat buffet for this edition of Throwback Thursday. Friday brings the weekend’s first postgame fireworks show, with the postgame concert by “Daze of My Youth” serving as a Led Zeppelin Tribute. Buckle up on Saturday, as 17-time July Hot Dog Eating Contest Champion Joey Chestnut will be at the stadium and ready to compete. There will be a pregame eating contest at 6 PM, where fans can purchase 10 cheeseburger dogs and compete against the greatest to ever do it. Spectators can also get a Joey Chestnut bobblehead with a cheeseburger dog to take in the night. The Fightin Phils will also be hosting a world famous Carpenter Mega Blast Fireworks show, the largest fireworks show in stadium history, on Saturday. On Sunday, the first 2,000 kids to enter the venue will get the ultimate “6-7” Ti-Shirt to celebrate the 1967 affiliation with the Phillies and a beloved trend that has taken off.

Reading (21-24) just came off of a back-to-back road trip, finishing the 13-game stretch out at 5-8. The Fightin Phils downed the division-leading New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Toronto Blue Jays Double-A affiliate) 4-3 before falling 5-1 to the Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox Double-A affiliate). The Fightins enjoyed a 20-0 blowout win on Saturday, May 16. This was Reading’s highest single-game run total since 2016. The Portland pitching staff contained Reading’s bats in the second road series, holding the R-Phils to just 15 runs across six contests (2.5 runs/game). Reading returned the favor, allowing just 21 runs (3.5 runs/game). The Fightins are fifth in the Eastern League-Northeast Division but sit just 3.5 games out of first place.

The Fightin Phils enter this series with a superb pitching staff. The team’s 4.19 earned run average is third best in the Eastern League, and the 135 walks allowed is the lowest mark in the league by 30. Five different Reading pitchers are sporting an earned run average below 3.00. Austin Murr leads the team in batting average (.292), and he’s nine-for-nine on steal attempts this season. Alex Binelas still paces the group in home runs (10), runs batted in (32), on-base percentage (.405), slugging percentage (.550) and on-base plus slugging (.955).

Harrisburg (24-21) is fresh off of a series split with the Akron RubberDucks (Cleveland Guardians Double-A affiliate). The Senators fell behind three games to one before outscoring the RubberDucks 8-1 over the last two contests combined to earn a stalemate. Harrisburg pitching was superb, allowing one run or less in four of the six games against Akron. The Senators are third in the Eastern League-Southwest Division, 7.5 games off of the pace.

Cayden Wallace paces the Senators offense. The former 2022 second round pick (Kansas City Royals) enters this six-game battle with nine home runs (team-best), 30 runs batted in (team-best) and a .279 batting average. His 10-game on-base streak was just snapped this past Sunday. Outfielder Sam Peterson has gone on a power surge to start the season as well, whacking eight home runs, 28 runs batted in and tallying 19 extra base hits in 43 games.

The pitching matchups for this week are as follows:

Tuesday: RHP Isaac Lyon (0-0, 0.00) vs. RHP Braydon Tucker (3-3, 1.46)
Wednesday: LHP Alex Clemmey (1-2, 4.67) vs. RHP Jean Cabrera (1-1, 5.63)
Thursday: RHP Kyle Luckham (3-3, 6.34) vs. RHP Gage Wood (0-1, 3.00)
Friday: LHP Shinnosuke Ogasawara (1-1, 2.36) vs. RHP Luke Russo (5-2, 4.08)
Saturday: RHP Josh Randall (0-0, 0.00) vs. LHP Adam Seminaris (4-3, 2.36)
Sunday: RHP Isaac Lyon (0-0, 0.00) vs. RHP Kyle Brnovich (1-3, 5.44)

The Nationals’ top 30 prospects (per MLB.com) on the Senators’ roster are as follows:

No. 12 - LHP Alex Clemmey
No. 23 - OF Sam Peterson
No. 26 - RHP Eriq Swan
No. 27 - C Caleb Lomavita

The 2026 R-Phils season is presented by Pepsi. Follow the Fightin Phils on Twitter @ReadingFightins, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Instagram @Fightins.